Hello everyone! Elton here! This is my first post on TOFUsenshi.com, but I’m excited because I’m writing about one of my favorite things: vegan donuts! Actually, I love all vegan desserts like cake and cheesecake, but donuts hold a special place in my heart.

I am so happy that I am able to find vegan donuts here in Tokyo. I first heard about Doughnut Plant through Twitter and Instagram about two months before coming to Tokyo. When I moved toTokyo, I stayed in a hotel in Shinjuku, so on the 1st day, I made it a mission to find Doughnut Plant, which was not far from my hotel at all.

Storefront of Doughnut Plant, Shinjuku in LUMINE EST

First a little about the company. Doughnut Plant is originally from New York City. I’ve been to New York City dozens of times,being originally from Philadelphia, but I admit that I’ve never heard of them before. Unlike other conventional donut shops, Doughnut Plant does not use egg in any of their baked goods. They do use cow’s milk, however, making them not suitable for vegans. Here in Tokyo, not only do they not use eggs either, but select donuts are made with soymilk instead of cow’s milk. That makes them vegan friendly! Though not everything they made is vegan-friendly, so be sure to check their website in advance, or be careful in reading the labels. Luckily, the donuts made with soymilk are clearly marked in English and Japanese. I do suggest going to the shop earlier in the day, as they might run out of the soymilk donuts!

Soymilk-made donuts are clearly marked in English and Japanese

I’ve gone to Donut Plant three times now, and both times there has been two types of soymilk-made donuts to choose from! The great thing about Donut Plant in Tokyo is that their menu changes with the season. Let me now talk about the delicious flavors I’ve been able to try:

SALTY CARAMEL
This was my 1st taste of Doughnut Plant! It was really good! It wasn’t overly sweet, or overly salty. I had a great balance that worked really well. I didn’t have it with coffee, but it was have been a perfect companion to a nice hot cup of coffee. Available from June 5 to July 16, 2014 only. I was glad to be able to get one, because when I first went, the second soymilk-made donut choice wasn’t available.

Salty Caramel Donut, with walnuts

COCONUT CITRUS
This was also supposed to available at the same time Salty Caramel came out, but they didn’t have it when I 1st went. So, I definitely had to go back! I personally am not super crazy about shredded coconut, but this was just the right amount! The citrus flavor was light, and it complimented the sugary coconut sheds very well!

Coconut Citrus donut, with shredded candied coconut

WILD BLUEBERRY
My third time back their website said they had Wild Blueberry and Pistachio soy-milk made donuts available from July 17 to August 31, 2014, but when I came only the Blueberry one was left. I can’t complain though, because this, too was very good. It wasn’t too sweet, but I wish it did have more pieces of blueberries on it. The one that I got had two or three small pieces on it, so it would have been even tastier with more.

Wild Blueberry Donut, with blueberries and a berry glaze

All in all, the prices are pretty reasonable. Cheaper than your average doughnut shop, but at the same price point as specialty donut shops. At around 300 to 320 Japanese Yen, they end up about $3.00 USD. They take credit card, too, so that’s good. Also, I just discovered that if you go to their website, you can sign up to receive monthly coupons though email! It’s about 30 yen off, so that knocks the price down a little.

Reasonably priced, around 300 to 320 yen

Getting there was challenging on the 1st time. For those new to Tokyo or the Shinjuku area, it can be a bit scary to navigate. The mistake I made was going to the 1st Lumine mall I saw, not knowing that there is in fact three different buildings that the mall Lumine occupies. When you are looking for this particular donut shop, make sure you are going into LUMINE EST and not Lumine 1 or Lumine 2. I will also say that the shop is more of a large stall on the ground floor, and not a shop that you can walk into and sit. It’s by the JR exits, but around Shinjuku Station, pretty much everything is! The address is below in both Japanese and English:

I will definitely be back to try the Pistachio flavor before the end of August, and I’ll be back more to check out their other offerings! Have any of you been able to try other yummy limited edition soymilk flavors? Let me know in the comments! Happy eating!